Introducing barbara lewis. Dr. Lewis heads the william at thetrotter Institute University of massachusetts boston where she is also an associate professor of english. She is a francophone scholar as well as a cultural historian who has published on lynching in film, photography and drama and the black arts movement. She currently blogs and is affiliated with the Massachusetts Foundation for the humanities and sits on the Advisory Board of Central Square theater. Before dr. Lewis takes the stage, i am going to ask you all if you would not mind turning off your cell phones, and also please note that cspan is recording, and at the end, if you have questions, if you would come to the microphone, that would be great. Now i have the pleasure of introducing dr. Barbara lewis. [applause] barbara it is truly a pleasure to be with you this evening. Particularly since so many of us understand that this is the birthday of Phillis Wheatley. We cannot say for sure that it is the birthday, because no
It was quite a shock to move from texas having been born and raised in virginia seeing it firsthand. I was contacted [inaudible] a 15yearold girl who walked into a liquor Market Grocery store in march, 1991 she picked up a bottle of orange juice and put it in her backpack with the 2 in her hand the shopkeeper thought she was trying to steal it so a fight began. It was one of the major cases that began the eruption that we now know as the 1992 riots to. Host and booktv has talked to you about that before. I hope it is in your archives where people can learn more about her book and the events of that time. And it is that we are here to talk about her work with his slavery. What is the answer to that question . Slavery is a bondage that has been part of who we are as a people since the beginning if you look at every major civilization in the world, the chinese, latin america, north america come every plac, every d slavery and we still have it today. Its one of those institutions we create
That we have any kinds of things that we focus on particularly in the History Department which is of course where my heart is in my mind is as well. Its been a wonderful time here though. Just seeing the change in of it. Host so you came the year before the l. A. Riots . Guest i did. It was quite a shock to move from texas where i was, having been born and raised in virginia and coming here and being part of that, seeing it firsthand. Host have you written about that . Guest yes, i have. I was so impacted by those rights i wrote a book called the l. A. Riots of 1992. I wrote a book that was published in Oxford University press in 2013. Host who was Latasha Harland . Guest a 15yearold girl who walked into a liquor market, a Grocery Store in march, 1991 close to her home in southcentral los angeles and she picked up a bottle of orange juice the cost 1. 78 nine. She put in a backpack and went to the counter with two dollars a head. The shopkeeper felt she was trying to steal the juice. A
Then i just do it all day long. I have a network of friends out there that im in touch with. Tom from the New York Times and we have changes exchanges back and forth and chuck todd and i talk a lot. He is the moderator of meet the press and our political dress it director in washington and other folks as well. We are not a very large group. The old political journalist and we like to stay in touch with each other. Why arent you on the letterman show . I dont know whats going to happen. Dave and i have been close for a long time and he is kept us very tight. I was on his first show when he went to cvs and we have been talking back and forth about a couple of things. I did send him an email today saying david, tonight tonight all the eyes of america will be on you the departure of an icon and im so proud to have been your friend. If you screw this up i will never talk to you again. [applause] tom brokaw perhaps its odd for me to be speaking to an icon of journalism breaking a journalisti
Then i just do it all day long. I have a network of friends out there that im in touch with. Tom from the New York Times and we have changes exchanges back and forth and chuck todd and i talk a lot. He is the moderator of meet the press and our political dress it director in washington and other folks as well. We are not a very large group. The old political journalist and we like to stay in touch with each other. Why arent you on the letterman show . I dont know whats going to happen. Dave and i have been close for a long time and he is kept us very tight. I was on his first show when he went to cvs and we have been talking back and forth about a couple of things. I did send him an email today saying david, tonight tonight all the eyes of america will be on you the departure of an icon and im so proud to have been your friend. If you screw this up i will never talk to you again. [applause] tom brokaw perhaps its odd for me to be speaking to an icon of journalism breaking a journalisti